get a grip on

Idioms  

1. Also, have a grip on. Obtain mastery or control over something or someone. For example, Get a grip on yourself or the reporters will give you a hard time, or, as Arthur Conan Doyle put it in Sherlock Holmes (1894): “I have a grip on the essential facts of the case.” This expression transfers a firm physical hold to emotional or intellectual control. [Late 1800s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

get a grip on

Instead, as the world’s best golfers try to get a grip on how to handle Birkdale, they’ve been thinking about the 2018 British Open at Carnoustie.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026

At the same time, successive governments have failed to "get a grip" on the persistent shortage of appropriate placements for these children, according to Dr Kerr.

From BBC ● May 20, 2026

There are broader geopolitical reasons for the U.S. to get a grip on Latin America.

From Barron's ● Jan. 5, 2026

It’s a key sequence in the script, yet we can’t get a grip on whether it’s horrific luck or a game of six-dimensional chess.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2025

My hands get a grip on his jacket.

From "Warcross" by Marie Lu